Monday, October 22, 2012

Try This Again

Since I’ve discovered I have one more generation to research
before achieving my goal of completing D.A.R. paperwork to link with an
established patriot, let’s take a look at this senior Zachariah Taliaferro.

For one thing, I already know his namesake and second son is
in my direct line.

So what about that father Zachariah? He was a Virginia native, born
1730. Marrying young, he took as his wife Mary Braxton Boutwell in 1749.
Together, they raised five sons and three daughters (including, incidentally,
one named Sarah, possibly the one for which the younger Zachariah named his own
daughter, the future Mrs. Sarah Ann Broyles).

The elder Zachariah, the patriot, removed from his parents’ Williamsburg residence to what in 1761 became Amherst County, Virginia.
There, he eventually served as Justice of the Peace. An interesting—albeit unsourced—anecdote
provides a sketch of Zachariah Taliaferro's resilient and possibly pugnacious character in his
role of public servant. He apparently was not one to back down in the face of
what had to be done, no matter what the circumstances.

Zachariah Taliaferro is now duly recorded as a Revolutionary
War patriot by virtue of his service in Amherst
County, Virginia, as
Justice of the Peace, and Member of the Committee of Safety, for which he
furnished supplies on behalf of the cause. The categories D.A.R. places his
service under are those labeled as Civil Service and Patriotic Service.

Zachariah Taliaferro lived a full eighty years. Though I
have yet to ferret out all the legacy that he passed along to his children, I
know that he came from a line whose genealogy has been pursued and documented
both in printed publications and online in several sources. Son of Captain
Richard and Rose Berryman Taliaferro, Zachariah’s ancestors emigrated from the
area around London, England. You may hardly expect a
name like Taliaferro to have originated there, though—and you are right. If the
reports I’ve read are correct, the family name originated in the area of Venice in what is now the country of Italy.

All of which represents a genealogical journey of which, in
such (to us) early dates as the 1770s, we pick up on a family history already
long in the making. For the current project’s purposes, in seeking to document
a connection with a Revolutionary War era ancestor, I’ll need to set aside that
temptation to peruse those other tempting family history details and focus on
the task at hand: get the rest of the required documentation and complete the D.A.R. application.

10 comments:

Wendy, thanks to a past that included graduation from a conservatory of music and marriage to a fellow student trained in voice performance (make that opera!), it was an irresistible pull to pronounce that surname just as if it were written into the libretto of an Italian opera. You know, put a little Italiano into that accent.

Wrong. A while back, someone was kind enough to reprint a 100-year-old guide to how to speak Virginian-style English. And guess what? "Taliaferro" does not rate that Italian treatment anymore. Make that "Tolliver." At least, that's how they pronounced it historically in Virginia.

Claudia, I've learned to ask advice from those who know about such applications. I have some difficult glitches in my documentation, too. And there are officers at the local DAR chapter who are there to advise in such cases. That's where my Genealogy Angel comes in. There are certain acceptable ways to circumvent those evidence issues.

Jacqi (hey, spelled it right that time--worked with a lady who used the "u" so it sort of stuck-- I apologize for the many times I've added the "u" to yours), but on with the comment. I wanted to tell you how much I have enjoyed reading your research stories over the last few weeks. I love the clean prose and the distinctive voice behind it. I don't normally call out specific blogs in my Friday Finds post, but I would like to highligh your blog in this Friday's post. Would you mind writing a short blurb about you and you blog that I can use in my post? I plan to elaborate on my end about why this is a fantastic blog to both reads and other bloggers (and want to be bloggers). If you interested drop me a line on FB or email me at genblogjulie @ .com. look forward to hearing from you.

Jacqi, I've always liked the name, Zachariah. So many sonorous syllables! And I understand the "Tolliver" pronunciation. I assume that for the DAR, you have to document the fact of his service, and maybe the connection of his service to the cause?

I can very much relate to your work here. Just a few weeks ago, the local DAR mailed in my application to the national. One item I had to secure was the actual copy of the Voucher showing my ggg grandfather's compensation for being in the Militia -- even though I had all the Voucher information to start with! I found that the National Archives now lets you make a document request--and pay by credit card--online. So it took only 3 weeks.

About Me

It is my contention that, after a lifetime, one of the greatest needs people have is to be remembered. They want to know: have I made a difference?
I write because I can't keep for myself the gifts others have entrusted to me. Through what I've already been given--though not forgetting those to whom I must pass this along--from family I receive my heritage; through family I leave a legacy. With family I weave a tapestry. These are my strands.